1. Field of the Invention
Example embodiments of the present invention relate to a valve test apparatus. Other example embodiments of the present invention relate to a valve test apparatus which is capable of testing whether a solenoid or venturi valve is operating normally, a solenoid valve test method and a venturi valve test method.
2. Description of the Related Art
Solenoid valves and venturi valves, which are widely used in semiconductor manufacturing equipment, control the flow of various gases. After prolonged use of such valves, reactive gas particles may be deposited on the inner surface of the valves, in which case, the valves may not operate properly.
When semiconductor manufacturing equipment equipped with a solenoid valve or a venturi valve is determined to be defective, it is difficult to determine whether the cause of the defective semiconductor manufacturing equipment is due to a defective solenoid valve or venturi valve until replacing the solenoid valve or a venturi valve with a new valve. Conventionally, in order to determine whether the semiconductor manufacturing equipment is operating normally, the solenoid valve or venturi valve may be replaced with a new valve. The solenoid valve or the venturi valve may sometimes still be replaced with a new valve, even when the valve is functioning properly. Valve replacement is costly and inefficient, lowering productivity.
In the case of solenoid valves, which are generally used in precision machinery, it takes a shorter amount of time to control the solenoid valves to supply gas. It may be desirous to determine how the amount of time it takes to drive solenoid valves after applying power to the solenoid valves. It may be difficult to precisely measure the time taken for the solenoid valves to actually begin operating. Hence, it may be difficult to determine whether semiconductor manufacturing equipment equipped with the solenoid valves is operating normally.